Sister of Mine
by RantoJax
Summary: She had known there was something special about Ryuko Matoi ever since she arrived at the school brandishing the Scissor Sword.
1. Chapter 1

She had known there was something about Ryuko Matoi that gave her pause, ever since she turned up at the Academy brandishing the Scissor sword and demanding to know about her father's murder. It wasn't till the second day when Matoi appeared, wearing that Kamui, Senketsu that Satsuki realised that there was something truly different about this girl that set her apart from the other students, even her Elite Four.

That feat alone was enough for Satsuki Kiryuin to take notice of the transfer student. And as time went on and Matoi continued to oppose her, Satsuki found she was beginning to feel something towards the girl. Respect maybe, or perhaps even admiration, her pride however would never allow herself to admit such things.

Soon Ryuko Matoi had become a worthy adversary for her to test the Honnouji Academy student army and the Elite Four against. Satsuki could see that Matoi was getting stronger with every battle, that she and the Godrobe, Senketsu were getting closer to becoming one. After the battle in Osaka, Satsuki knew that Ryuko's control over her Godrobe had surpassed even her own ability to control Junketsu. It was then that she knew Ryuko would be the strongest ally to have against Ragyo Kiryuin, her Mother.

And the plan had worked. Until the original Life Fiber activated, and Ragyo reattached her severed head to her body, and had then proceeded to beat Satsuki without mercy. Leaving her beaten and defeated in a pile of rubble robbed of both her dignity and kamui.

Satsuki could only watch, helpless, when Ragyo confronted Ryuko, and ripped the girls still beating heart from her chest.

"And here I thought you were dead. Daughter of Mine."

In that instant time seemed to stop and all noise fell away until the only thing Satsuki could hear was the rapid beat of Ryuko's life fiber infused heart in Kiryuin Ragyo's firm grip.

Trying to process what Ragyo had just said, Satsuki knew that Ryuko was the only one strong enough to stop the monster that was her mother. No. Their Mother, the monster that had birthed them only for her own selfish experiments.

And so she stood on trembling legs, her body battered and broken but her spirit and resolve stronger than ever. She stood up and charged. The only one that could save the world was Ryuko, and to do that Satsuki was the one that had to save her first.

Her Sister.

Ryuko.


	2. Chapter 2

It was around 2am when Satsuki walked into the kitchen and found Ryuko sitting at the counter with a bowl of cereal.

"Ryuko, What are you doing up?"

"Shit, Satsuki, don't go sneaking up on people." She went back to idly stirring a bowl of soggy cornflakes. "What are you doing up?"

"I asked first." She replied making her way to the kettle. "You should be exhausted. Go back to bed."

Ryuko stopped stirring, let go of the spoon and sighed heavily "I can't."

Satsuki looked over at Ryuko while she put tea leaves into a teapot. "Why not?"

Ryuko screwed up her face in frustration and ran her hands through her messy hair. "I just… It's… I'm so tired but my brain won't turn off, you know?"

Satsuki pulled out a tray and placed two cups and the teapot on it. "Put that bowl in the sink and come with me." She promptly picked up the tray and started walking out of the kitchen. She was almost out the door when Ryuko scrambled out of her chair and with a clatter put her still half full bowl of cereal in the sink. Satsuki was down the hall when Ryuko caught up to her.

"Where are we going?" she asked after a few minutes of walking.

"You obviously need to talk about things so that's what we're going to do. Open this door please." She gestured to a set of double doors.

Ryuko did as she was asked. The doors led to a large room that had to be Satsuki's bedroom. There was a large king sized bed, a desk, a chair and small coffee table. There was also two separate doors that Ryuko could only assumed led to a Bathroom and a walk in robe. The room was sparsely decorated, the walls painted a pale blue with a few pictures of landscapes and city skylines hanging on the walls.

"So this is your room… Huh. This is exactly what I expected." Ryuko grinned over at Satsuki who had put the tray onto a bedside table and was pouring tea into the two cups.

"Don't just stand there. Come and sit, make yourself comfortable." She gestured to the bed.

Ryuko hesitantly moved over to the large bed, she paused at the side before climbing up and making herself comfortable. She sat close to the edge, back against the head board.

Satsuki passed Ryuko a cup and then got herself settled into the large bed before reaching for her own cup of tea.

Satsuki held the cup in both hands, enjoying the warmth it granted her. She took a sip and smiled before looking over to the girl next to her. "What is it that's keeping you awake?"

"I don't know… Everything I guess." Ryuko sighed and closed her eyes, like Satsuki, she grasped the cup in both hands. "Every time I close my eyes to try and sleep I see them… Ragyo and Nui, and they're touching me. Like when they put Junketsu on me. And then I see the memories they implanted. Happy memories. And It's just. It's painful. Like at times I wish we could have been a normal family. No Life Fibres taking over the world. Dad still alive. You and me, we would've grown up together."

"I know. I know what you mean. I've thought about this my whole life. Ever since Father told me I had a baby sister whom Mother tossed away." Satsuki spoke quietly, staring at her cup.

They sat in silence. Both thinking of what should have been.

"The touching… she… she did it to me as well." Satsuki turned her head away, unable to meet Ryuko's gaze.

"Satsuki." Ryuko reached out a hand towards the older girl then placed it on the bed between them, not knowing how she might react to being touched while speaking of such a traumatising subject. "I'm sorry. I, do you need to talk about it?"

Satsuki slowly put the now empty cup on the bedside table. Hands now empty she pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. Her eyes darted to the side and returned to looking forward. Ryuko, her cup put on the other bedside table, turned so she was facing Satsuki.

"It started when I was 10. She called it a purification ritual. It wasn't until I was 13 when I really understood what she was doing. I had already started building the school by then so I was able to spend less and less time at the mansion." Satsuki paused and looked over at Ryuko. "I think that's when she turned her attention to Nui. Even so I would still have to go home on occasion and she would perform the ritual. I knew I had to let her think she was in control and that everything I was doing was for her and the life fibres."

"…Satsuki…" Ryuko moved closer to the older girl.

"The last time she did it was after our battle in Osaka. Nui hijacked the helicopter and took me back to the mansion to see _her_." Satsuki felt something damp on her cheeks. She raised a hand only to realise she was shedding silent tears. "I didn't want to but I-" her voice hitched as more tears fell and her she struggled to continue speaking, her breath ragged. "Ryuko!"

"Neechan" Ryuko reached over and embraced her sister. "It's okay. She can't get to you anymore." Ryuko hadn't realised how broken the older girl was. "Shhhh. I'm here." She rubbed comforting circles on her back with one hand, the other stroking the soft short hair.

The girl in her arms was no longer the tall and proud council president that commanded with respect and fear. Instead she was just a girl who needed her sister.

After some time Satsuki had cried herself to sleep, Ryuko watched her. She noticed that Satsuki looked younger when she slept. No longer having to put on a strong and confident appearance her face appeared serene and calm, even after sobbing heavily causing her face to become red and blotchy.

Ryuko brushed aside some hair. "I promise I'll always be here for you Satsuki. We'll get through this. Together." She whispered. Ryuko then leaned forward and placed a soft kiss upon her sister's forehead. She pulled the older girl closer and closed her eyes, embracing both her sister and sleep.

"…Imouto…" Satsuki mumbled, tightening her grip on Ryuko.


	3. Chapter 3

Ryuko had planned to move back in with Mako and her family when they had finally been relocated to a new permanent residence, but Mako had other ideas. She had been watching Ryuko carefully since the end of the battle with the life Fibres. She could see how lonely and withdrawn Ryuko had become since losing Senketsu, and so she had ordered her to stay with Satsuki and let them bond as sisters.

Ryuko had her own room in the new penthouse they now shared but it was hardly used. In the relatively large empty apartment, the two sisters tended to gravitate to each other, which is how most nights Ryuko would end up sleeping in Satsuki's bed. Satsuki didn't mind, in fact she liked it. Being able to go to sleep and wake up knowing that her sister was safe and within reach, calmed her. Ryuko herself liked having another presence close by; having gotten use to sharing a room with the Mankanshoku's and Senketsu. Now that she no longer had Senketsu, having Satsuki close was comforting.

Having tea in bed had also become routine for the two sisters. Satsuki would go and prepare the tea and by the time she got back to the bedroom, Ryuko would have already gotten herself comfy under the blankets.

"I went and visited Mako today." Ryuko accepted her cup of tea once Satsuki was sitting comfortably.

"Oh, and how is she doing over at the clinic?" Satsuki took a sip and smiled.

"Good, great actually. She basically runs the place. She's surprisingly good at Administration work." Ryuko replied with a hint of pride.

"Hmm yes. When she was the Fight club president her skills really shone through. If she had continued much longer I would have been forced to allow you in to the council with my elite four." Satsuki remarked with a smirk.

"I was lonely back then. When we were in the two star mansion I mean. I missed the family dinners. I missed everyone being happy with what little we had. They had everything they could want but it wasn't the same. Even Mako felt so distant. All I had was Senketsu."

"That's why you stopped fighting?"

"Yeah." Both were silent as minutes passed.

"You still miss him don't you?"

"Hell yeah I do! Why wouldn't I miss him!" Ryuko growled angrily. "He was one of the only two friends, no _Best_ friends I had for the longest time. And then he had to go and fucking burn up!" Tears were now starting to pool in her eyes, Ryuko wiped them away angrily. "I still haven't forgiven the bastard."

Both were silent once more.

"Did I ever tell you what happened after me and Senketsu took the life fibres from Shinra-Kōketsu?"

Satsuki shook her head, listening intently to what the younger girl had to say.

"I asked her to come back with me."

Satsuki was surprised to hear this. Even after all they had been through, Ryuko still tried to see the good in people. "Why?"

"I don't know. I think some part of me thought that without the life fibres we could be a normal family." Ryuko sighed in resignation. "Naturally she refused, ripped her heart out and chose to die on her own terms."

"She always did have a flair for the dramatics."

"I think it's a family trait." They both chuckled at that.

"Can I ask you something?" Ryuko looked down at her hands twisting the blanket in her lap with a look of apprehension on her face.

"Of course, is something wrong?"

"It's just something that's been bugging me for a while." She paused to gather her thoughts. "What happened to you after the explosion, during that month when I was in a coma? No one will tell me anything besides you being held captive."

"No."

"What? Why not? Come on Satsuki, we have to talk about this. We have to talk about it so we can move on, cause keeping it bottled up inside won't work, it'll keep building up till you just explode from the pain. And then it'll be even worse. I still have shit I need to work through and for that I need you, and you need me, so please. Tell me what happened." Ryuko gave a pleading but determined look to Satsuki.

She was right, Satsuki knew that. As much as she hated to admit it, one of her faults was that she struggled to open up to anyone, determined to shoulder everything. But Ryuko was right, she wasn't alone anymore, not that she was before, but having someone else who was in the same position as her meant she could talk about everything she had been through and not be judged for it, and instead get the support and comfort that she surely needed to help the healing process.

Satsuki got out of the bed and started pacing, looking over at Ryuko every few seconds. "You want to know what happened to me while you were sleeping for a whole month. They kept me chained up by my wrists, naked! I think they fed me maybe once a day, I'm not quite sure because I had no idea how long I was down in that cage for! Every so often either Nui or Hoormaru would come in with a goddamn fire hose and right after that Ragyo would come for a little visit, She'd smack me around a bit, trying to make me angry. Telling me she's going to feed me to her Kōketsu, and then fucking molests me and there wasn't a goddamn thing I could do about it!" She paused, wiped her eyes and then sat on the edge of the bed next to Ryuko, who reached over and grabbed her hand. "One good thing was that she confirmed what she said about us being sisters, at the time I was still struggling with the concept that you were the baby that she tossed away after the failed experiment. She told me how our father faked his death so he could raise you."

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry for not coming to rescue you. I'm sorry I went in there angry and without Senketsu and got myself caught. I was only thinking about myself and how I was just a life fibre monster like _her_. Fuck. I'm sorry I attacked you and said all that shit when I was wearing Junketsu and- OhmygodIkissedNui!" Ryuko's face became pallid as she recalled the unfortunate memory.

"What?"

Ryuko's hands were pressed into her eyes "Fuck. I kissed Nui… Right after they fitted Junketsu to me. Oh God, I think I used tongue!" Ryuko jumped out of the bed and ran to the bathroom. A moment later Satsuki could hear the electric toothbrush buzzing. "Sowwy, ah juss nee too bwush mah teef fer like ah year." Five minutes later Ryuko returned to the bedroom. "We're gonna need more toothpaste."

Satsuki just shook her head. "C'mon get into bed, it's -_yawn_- late."

"Right, guess we have met our nightly quota of emotional heart to heart shit for tonight." Ryuko turned off the bedroom light, the moon illuminating the room enough to see by. She clambered into the bed and lay on her back next to Satsuki.

Several minutes passed, all that could be heard was the barely audible breathing of the two sisters. Ryuko rolled onto her side and simply watched Satsuki as her chest rose up and down with each breath. "Hey, Neechan."

"hmm"

"I'm glad we can talk to each other about stuff." With that Ryuko scooted closer and nestled into the older girls' side, putting her arm over Satsuki's midriff and grasped the loose shirt that she wore.

Satsuki placed her own hand over Ryuko's taking comfort in it. "As do I, Imouto." She replied with a tender smile.

* * *

><p>I must apologize if the characters seem OOC at times. That just kinda happens as I don't have a set writing style. I try and keep them as in character as much as possible. These chapters are, for the most part, in a chronological order.<p> 


	4. Chapter 4

Satsuki found herself home alone after a long day at the REVOC's office. Ryuko would normally be home before her so she was starting to worry that something might have happened to her sister as it was now almost 11. She had been sitting in front of the large television watching the late night news when she finally decided to ring Ryuko's mobile.

Though for some reason she could hear her own muffled voice coming from outside the front door to the apartment. "_RYUKO MATOI!... RYUKO MATOI…!_"

Surprisingly the muffled voice of Nonon Jakuzure could also be heard "Fuck! Satsuki-chan? Wait, why is it coming from your pocket?"

"It'ss mahphone. Hold on. Wait. Wherezit? Nevermind, foundit. H-h-heeeey Neeeechan!" Ryuko's slurred voice could now be heard directly outside the front door.

Satsuki got up and walked over and opened it. In front of her was Ryuko, a crimson flush across her face and draped over Nonon, who did not look happy at having the taller girl using her as a support.

"Satsuki-chan!"

"Nonon, what happened to her?" Satsuki asked.

"Me and the boys found her at the sports bar about an hour ago, she seemed fine just a little tipsy but I guess she can't hold her liqueur as well as she thought she could, pretty sure she had some shots when we weren't looking. She almost got into a bar fight too, that's when we decided to bring her home. Here, she's your problem now." With that Nonon slipped out from under Ryuko's arm and shoved her towards the bemused Satsuki, then sped off down the hall and into the elevator. She gave a wave just as the doors shut.

"Satsuki?" Ryuko still had her phone to her ear and looked confused. "Where'd the troll go?"

"Ryuko, why where you out drinking?"

"Why were you not?"

"Because neither of us is over the age of 20, which is the minimum legal age of public alcohol consumption in this country. Now, why where you out so late, drinking?"

"I wus with Senketsu. We were commi- commiserating together."

"Ryuko, I'm sorry but he's gone, it's been almost two months."

"He's not gone! He-he's out there!" She pointed to the ceiling. "And- and he's not gone, you- you bitch!" Ryuko staggered back from Satsuki, raised her fists and then lurched forward with a poorly aimed punch. Satsuki easily grabbed the oncoming fist and got the intoxicated girl into a loose wristlock.

"Ah, fuck."

"Ryuko, please calm down."

"Fuck, oww, okay. Imma calm, we're cool. Oww." With that Satsuki let go of Ryuko's wrist.

"I'm sorry, I shouldna done that. I'm gunna -_hic_- hug you now. Comin' in fer the hu-blughhh!" Ryuko proceeded to vomit all over herself and Satsuki, who had been less than a foot away. "Oh god, Neecha- ughhhh"

Satsuki merely frowned in disgust and took Ryuko by the scruff of her jacket and marched her to the bathroom.

"I dun feel s'good."

"What did you think would happen after drinking god knows how much alcohol?"

Satsuki sighed and then proceeded to remove Ryuko's clothing much to her weak protests.

"Ryuko, stop struggling, you're only making more of a mess. Now sit!" She forced to younger girl on to the stool in front of the shower.

She then undressed herself, depositing the puke stained clothes in to the sink to be rinsed out later. Ryuko was slumped over and moaning, head between her knees, mumbling nonsense to herself.

Satsuki then took the shower head, rinsed herself off first then started to wash Ryuko. By the time she was finished the inebriated girl was struggling to stay awake. Satsuki dried both herself and Ryuko off and wrapped the younger girl in her own personalised black towel that had _Ryuko_ embroidered in red on it, she then donned her own dressing gown and carried the now sleeping girl to the bedroom where she laid her on what had become Ryuko's side of the large bed.

After making sure Ryuko was comfy and warm under the blankets Satsuki turned to the walk-in-robe and changed into a pair of clean pyjamas. After that she left the bedroom only to return a few minutes later with a bucket which she placed on the floor beside Ryuko, and a glass of water on the bedside table.

* * *

><p>Daylight was streaming in through the open curtains and was, unfortunately for Ryuko, landing directly on the pillow she was currently using. She opened her eyes blearily when she heard the door slam shut only to close them from the intense sunlight.<p>

"Oh god." She muttered to herself with a dry, gravelly voice, "What happened? Am I dead? God I hope I'm dead. Fuck." There was a clink of porcelain next to her. She squinted and looked up to see Satsuki standing beside the bed drinking a cup of tea. "Oh my god, could you drink that any louder?"

"Yes." Satsuki, with a smirk as she then uncharacteristically slurped her tea.

Ryuko managed to sit up and held her head in her hands "My mouth tastes gross, and cottony. Blegh." feeling a waft of cold air she looked down to see the blanket had fallen away from her chest "Am I naked? Why am I naked? Oh god what did I do last night?! Fuck." Panic was starting to set in, she then looked to Satsuki "Tell me we did not have sex!" Ryuko was then sprayed with tea as Satsuki sputtered and coughed on the liquid that had remained in her windpipe.

"Why-_cough-_ would you think that?!" Satsuki asked in a strained voice while wiping tea off her chin, her pale skin flushed pink.

Using the blanket to dry herself, Ryuko replied, "Well, you know. Your hot, I'm hot. Before the whole sister revelation there was some pretty palpable sexual tension going on between us." She paused a moment "Even though I was kinda tryin' to kill you… Any way it's too damn early to be talking about this shit. Fuck, my head feels like it's gonna implode. And I'm covered in tea. Fan-_fucking_-tastic."

"It's 3 in the afternoon. Get up." Satsuki turned on her heel and walked across the room.

Ryuko groaned and flopped back down on the bed pulling the blanket over her head.

"If you don't get up I won't tell you what you did last night." Satsuki paused at the door waiting for a response. A few moments later she heard a groan followed by a muffled "_Fine._" from under the blanket.

Once Ryuko had bathed, dressed and given her teeth and mouth a sorely needed brush and rinse she found Satsuki in the kitchen.

"I made you bacon and eggs. I've been told they help with hangovers." She pushed a plate towards Ryuko along with a glass of water and some aspirin. Satsuki proceeded to enlighten the younger girl as to what happened the night before.

"I'm sorry for callin' you a bitch. That was uncalled for. Guess I'm kind of a dick when I drink huh." Ryuko gave a sheepish grin.

"Apology accepted, just don't let this happen again." Replied Satsuki into a fresh cup of tea.

"Hehe yeah. Don't worry it won't. And thanks, for looking after me n' stuff." Ryuko replied with a tender expression.

Satsuki's reply was a whispered promise and a storm of emotions in the blue piercing gaze.

"Always."


	5. Chapter 5

Someone was bouncing up and down next to Ryuko on the large bed she was currently trying to sleep in. "Ryuko-chan! Wake up Ryuko-chan!"

"ughh, s' too loud. Sleeping." Ryuko burrowed deeper into the pile of blankets that she was wrapped in.

"C'mon Ryuko-chan you gotta get up. Or maybe I'll just keep the presents for myself."

"Wha- presents?" Ryuko's head emerged from the blanket cocoon, as she groggily looked first at Mako who was now leaning over her and then to her sister.

"Indeed. It is your birthday after all." Replied Satsuki, who was standing by the bedroom door watching Mako energetically jump on the bed.

"Is it? Huh. Guess I must've forgotten. I mean, it's not a big deal or nothin'." Ryuko yawned.

"Oh but it is a big deal Ryuko-chan! 18 years ago you came into this world and I'm so glad that you did. Now. Go get dressed so you can come and have a birthday breakfast with me and Satsuki-sama. We're having pancakes!" With that Mako shooed Ryuko out of the bed and into the bathroom.

* * *

><p>"I hope Ryuko-chan likes all the presents I brought. Which should I give first?" Mako mumbled to herself looking at the pile of brightly coloured packages of varying sizes that sat on the dining room table.<p>

Satsuki merely smiled and shook her head at the energetic young girl and made her way to the kitchen where Soroi was busy cooking. "Thank you Soroi, for doing all of this." She gestured to the counter where stacks of pancakes and various condiments were waiting to be eaten.

"It's my pleasure Satsuki-sama, but this was all your idea." Her faithful butler replied with a kind smile. "I know how much this means to you, to be able to do this for your sister after all these years."

"Whoa!" Ryuko walked into the open living area and took in first the pile of presents and then the stacks of food. "Man, I am starving." She said patting her stomach.

"Please dig in and enjoy Ryuko-sama." Soroi said as he placed the last batch of pancakes in front of her.

"Thanks, this looks amazing!" Ryuko was practically drooling. "Oh mah goff ahm in heathen!" She exclaimed with a mouthful of food, already drowning her next pancake in maple syrup.

"Now if you will excuse me I shall leave you to it." He removed the apron, bowed and left the kitchen; just as he reached the front door he felt a hand on his shoulder.

"Thank you again Soroi, won't you stay and celebrate with us?" Satsuki asked.

"It is kind of you to offer but I don't wish to intrude. This is time Ryuko-sama should spend with the two people who care about her the most." He cupped her cheek in a loving gesture that a father would do.

Satsuki turned her head into the hand and took comfort in the simple gesture from the man that had raised her. "You're too good to me old friend. Since its futile trying to convince you to stay for breakfast will you at least come over tomorrow and join me for afternoon tea?"

"It would be my pleasure." With that her faithful butler turned and left the apartment.

"Satsuki-sama! You're gonna miss out on the pancakes! Ryuko-chan's eating them all!" Mako shouted from the kitchen.

"Don't listen to her! She's the one stuffing her face!" Ryuko shouted through another mouthful of food.

Satsuki merely chuckled as she walked back to the kitchen.

After breakfast was finished Mako excitedly dragged Ryuko and Satsuki over to the pile of presents. "Satsuki-sama would you like to go first?"

"Thank you but I can see you're about to burst with excitement, I can wait until you are finished." Satsuki replied with a smile.

"You guys really didn't have to get me anything." Ryuko butted in, though Satsuki could tell she was excited.

"Don't be silly Ryuko-chan. It's your Birthday and that means presents. Now open this." Mako grinned as she shoved a brightly coloured parcel into her hands. "This one is from mum, she made it herself."

Ryuko opened the package to find a red scarf.

"It even has your name on it, see!" Mako pointed to one end and there Ryuko saw her name embroidered neatly in black.

"Thanks Mako, I love it." Ryuko carefully put it on the table so she could open the next present that Mako handed her.

Five minutes later and Ryuko had finished opening all the gifts from Mako and her family. Next to her was a pile of various foods and articles of clothing, including a new pair of bunny pyjamas that actually fit.

"I guess it's my turn. Here." Satsuki handed over a white box with a blue ribbon tied around it. "I wanted to get you something special. To make up for all the years I couldn't be with you. I asked Iori to make it."

Ryuko gingerly pulled the ribbon undone and opened the lid to find a red and black leather jacket. "Holy crap! Neechan! This is- I love it!" Ryuko put it on and admired it in a nearby mirror. "It fits like a glove! This is one of the best presents I have ever gotten. Thank you." She then hugged Satsuki who returned it in kind. "You too Mako, get over here." Mako eagerly joined in, both she and Satsuki shared a knowing look, both delighted to see Ryuko so happy.

"I guess this means I don't need to give you your second present then." Satsuki joked as they broke apart.

"What! Another present!" Ryuko was now like a five year old.

Satsuki merely smiled picked up the new red scarf and headed towards to the front door. "Follow me." The other two eagerly following to see what the surprise was.

They emerged from the elevator into the underground garage. Satsuki had tied the scarf around Ryuko's head so as not to peek before she was ready. She held on to Ryuko's elbow to avoid walking into anything.

Mako gave a loud gasp and squeal of excitement, "What? What is it?" asked Ryuko excitedly.

Satsuki stood in front of Ryuko and pulled off the scarf, "Happy Birthday, Imouto." She said as she moved to the side allowing Ryuko an un-obstructed view of her final gift.

"No way. No freaking way! Are you serious?" Ryuko looked to her sister in disbelief. "For real, you got me a motorbike?" Ryuko exclaimed.

"Do you -uh- do you like it?" Satsuki asked in apprehension.

"Like it, I freaking _love_ it! You are the single greatest sister ever!" Ryuko grabbed Satsuki's head and kissed her on the cheek. She then turned and hopped on the bike.

Satsuki simply stood watching as she touched the cheek that was kissed, her face flushed with embarrassment, she smiled and her eyes sparkled with unshed tears of joy.

"Mako, look it matches the jacket! I'm gonna take it out for ride!"

Satsuki is pulled from her thoughts as Ryuko started to rev the bike. "Helmet!" She points to a matching Helmet that sat on the ground by the front wheel.

"Right, thanks." Ryuko put it on and started to maneuver towards the entrance.

"Be careful." Satsuki shouted over the noise.

"I will!" Ryuko shouted in reply and then sped out on to the street.

Both Mako and Satsuki stood in the underground garage listening to the engine roar of Ryuko's motorbike as it got further away.

Satsuki looked down at Mako standing next to her with a content smile, "Mako, would you like to join me for some tea?"

"I would love to Satsuki-sama!" she grinned up at the older girl.

* * *

><p>Both girls got settled on the plush couch, cups of freshly brewed tea in hand.<p>

"I think this might be the best birthday Ryuko-chan has ever had." Mako broke the silence.

"To be honest I struggled to come up with an idea of what to get Ryuko. Really it was Iori and Uzu who actually suggested the jacket and motorbike."

"Well it's pretty obvious they were good ideas. I wouldn't be surprised if Ryuko-chan decided to sleep in that jacket." grinned Mako.

"She'll have to sleep in her own room if that's the case." Satsuki paused, she furrowed her brow in contemplation. "I've been emotionally detached for as long as I can remember, so much so that I have trouble expressing how I feel towards those that I care the most for. That's why I show my gratitude with gifts." Satsuki sighed at this and took a sip of tea. She turned to Mako "These past few months I've been trying to change, so that I can leave the past behind me, so that I can be a better friend and- and the loving sister that she deserves."

Mako took the cup from Satsuki's hand and placed it on the table before grasping both of Satsuki's hands in her own.

"I understand. A lot of what drove you to fight against your mother and the life fibers was the love you had for the sister you lost. Much like you she has trouble expressing her more intimate emotions. She may not say it but I know for a fact that Ryuko-chan loves you, Satsuki-sama. And so do me and all your friends." Mako gazed at Satsuki with a look of pure adoration.

"Thank you, Mako." Satsuki replied giving the other girls hands a gentle squeeze to show her gratitude. "Now tell me, how is everything over at the clinic? I would like to hear how you and your family have been these past few months."

Mako's eyes sparkled with excitement as she began telling Satsuki literally everything. Satsuki simply smiled into her tea once more, with mirth in her eyes, enjoying the company of someone she could, without a doubt, call friend.


	6. Chapter 6

_Satsuki opened her eyes and looked around her. She was kneeling in a room full of shadows. She tried to stand but found she had chains wrapped around her, keeping her in place. Then she heard it. A laugh that sent shivers down her spine, it echoed around her._

_She felt a hand stroke her head as the monsters voice came from behind._

"_You thought you could get rid of me that easily? Oh Satsuki, you poor foolish girl. You can't kill me, you can't escape me. I'm going to feed you to __Shinra-Kōketsu__ and it will devour you."_

_The voice moved in front of her now._

"_You always were a failure. You weren't strong enough for the life fibre synchronisation. You couldn't kill me. You couldn't even save your baby sister." With that a body was thrown in front of Satsuki, it rolled over and came to a stop._

"…_Ryuko…?" The lifeless body of her sister lay in front of her. Ryuko's dead eyes were open and staring into her own. Her naked body was bloody and beaten with a hole in her chest. "RYUKO!" Satsuki screamed._

"_I ripped her heart out and gave it to Nui. Or perhaps I should have given it to you? You would have liked that wouldn't you, to have Ryuko's heart. That's what you want isn't? For her to love you as much as you love her."_

_Satsuki was sobbing now, she leaned forward as far as the chains would allow, to reach her sisters body. "Ryuko."_

"_Satsuki? Neechan, it's okay. I'm here." Ryuko's voice was faint._

_The chains that held her down disappeared, she lurched forward and knelt over Ryuko's body and her hand moved forward and stroked a bruised blood smeared cheek. "Ryuko?" She searched her pale face for life._

_Ryuko's eyes locked on to hers. "Wake-up Neechan."_

Satsuki gasped, eyes opening. The blurry shape of a person hung above her. She panicked and struggled against it until she heard Ryuko's voice. "Satsuki! It's just me."

Her vision came into focus. She could now make out Ryuko's features in the dim light of a reading lamp. "Ryuko?"

"Yeah, it's me. You had a nightmare." Ryuko sat back on her knees as Satsuki sat up. "You got tangled up in the blankets."

"If felt like chains."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Ryuko asked.

Silence hung between the two. Ryuko waited patiently for the older girl.

"If it helps I dreamt you were stepping on me… You were just kicking me in your sleep though." Ryuko shrugged.

"She was there. She killed you." Satsuki raised a hand to Ryuko's chest "Ripped out your heart." Satsuki choked on her words and began to cry. She lurched forward and wrapped her arms around Ryuko's waist and buried her head in her chest. She grabbed fistfuls of Ryuko's shirt and tightened her grip, afraid that she might disappear.

Ryuko wrapped her own arms around Satsuki, one hand in her hair and the other stroking her back.

Satsuki could feel the strong steady beat of Ryuko's heart as she pressed her head into her sister's chest. It was comforting, the reassurance that she was still alive. She drew in a shaky breath, trying to control the sobs that still wracked her body. A few minutes later she was pulling away from Ryuko. She sniffed and looked at Ryuko's shirt unable to meet her gaze.

"Sorry. I'm not sure what came over me."

"Hey. It's okay." Ryuko gently cupped Satsuki's cheeks with her hands and brushed away the tracks her tears had made. "Hey, look at me." Satsuki met Ryuko's eyes. Eyes so full of love and understanding she almost wanted to cry again. "You don't ever have to apologize for the times when you have to let go. I made you a promise that I would always be here for you, no matter what happens we're in this together."

Satsuki could only nod; she could see the determination and passion in Ryuko's piercing blue eyes.

Ryuko brought Satsuki's head closer and placed a gentle kiss on her forehead, she then pressed their heads together, noses touching. "You are not alone, Satsuki." Her thumb was gently stroking her cheek; her right hand moved down and stopped over the older girls own thumping heart. "I was always right here, and I always will be." She grabbed one of Satsuki's hands and placed it over her own heart. "And you're in mine, squished in with Mako and Senketsu."

Satsuki smiled at that. Her face flushed with heat at the intimate position they were in. Her red rimmed eyes, raw with emotions that she could only share with the girl in front of her, darted from Ryuko's intense gaze down to her lips.

"_That's what you want isn't? For her to love you as much as you love her."_ She could still hear Ragyo's voice echo in the back of her mind. Satsuki suddenly pulled away from Ryuko. "I can't!" She grabbed her hair and squeezed her eyes shut. "No, I won't become like her."

"Satsuki?"

"I love you but as much as I want to act on my feelings, I can't. If I do then I'll be just like her, a monster."

"No, you won't. You could never be like her! What she did to you, to us was so- so despicable. She used it to manipulate, to control. You would never do that-"

"But I did manipulate and control you!"

"That's not-" Ryuko paused "We've been over this. On the ship you apologised for that. And that was just fighting each other and shit." Ryuko sighed and looked to the bedside clock. "Okay, 3 in the morning is not the time to be discussing this. I'm tired, your tired, let's just go back to sleep okay?" She then opened her arms inviting Satsuki into her embrace.

Satsuki nodded. Ryuko was right; she was too emotionally drained to keep talking for the moment. So she settled into Ryuko's arms and pulled the blanket over them. Relishing the warm comfort that Ryuko gave her. Listening to the steady rhythm of Ryuko's heart, Satsuki soon found her eyelids heavy with sleep. Right before sleep finally took her, she heard Ryuko say something that made her own heart skip a beat.

"I love you too, Satsuki."


	7. Chapter 7

_**Wednesday Evening**_

"You really should take it easy and not work so hard Neechan. You're gonna make yourself sick." Ryuko stood in front of Satsuki's desk.

"What was that? Sorry I'm a bit busy at the moment, oh is that for me?" Satsuki looked up and pointed to the tea cup in Ryuko's hand.

"Yeah, and dinner should be ready soon." Ryuko placed the hot tea in front of her sister.

"Thank-" Satsuki paused; eye's watering and mouth slightly agape. "-_Achoo_-"

Ryuko crossed her arms, smirked and leant against the desk "What did I just say?"

"It's just dust. I don't get sick. Now go, shoo. I have documents I need to go over before tomorrow." Satsuki dismissed the younger girl with a wave of her hand.

"Uh huh." Ryuko walked out of the office, pausing at the door to glance back at the older girl, her attention back to the papers that covered her desk, tea in hand.

Ryuko was walking down the hall when she heard a second and third sneeze followed by a muffled "Crap!" and shuffling of papers. She simply shook her head and entered the kitchen to continue making dinner.

"Ryuko, do we have any aspirin?" Satsuki shouted as she rummaged through the draws under the bathroom sink.

"Yeah, top shelf." Ryuko replied as she walked through the bathroom door carrying her pyjamas. She opened the mirror cabinet, reached up and grabbed the bottle then handed it to Satsuki. "Now scoot, I'm having a bath." She then proceeded to shoo Satsuki out of the shared bathroom.

_**Thursday**_

"Are you okay Satsuki? You've not eaten much and you look like shit." Satsuki was sitting in her office, Nonon was sat on the other side of the desk, and both had salads in front of them.

"It's nothing to worry about. I'm just distracted, is all. What with the new clothing line coming out next week. I've been having some late nights. Anyway, how's the youth orchestra going?"

Nonon gave her a scrutinizing look before answering Satsuki's question.

"C'mon Ryuko-chan we're almost there." Shouted Mako from the top of a hill.

"I'm -_cough_- coming. Fuck -_cough_- I can't be that out of shape?" Ryuko muttered to herself as she got to Mako, out of breath from the short uphill jog.

"Are you alright Ryuko-chan? You look a bit pale." Mako asked looking intently at Ryuko's face.

"I'm fine, guess I just gotta hit the gym a bit more." Ryuko waved her off before continuing walking to their destination. "Oi, are we still doing lunch tomorrow?"

Satsuki went straight to bed after dinner, unable to keep her eyes open much longer. She changed and crawled under the covers, five minutes later she was dead to the world.

_**Friday Morning**_

Normally when Ryuko would finally stumble out of bed, Satsuki would be long gone to work. But when Ryuko rolled over to check the time she ended up face planting into the older girls' ample chest.

"Mffghh?" Ryuko lifted her head from the soft cushioning and looked first at Satsuki then to the clock behind her. "Satsuki? What are you still doing here? Oi, wake up sleepy butt, it's like half 10." Satsuki gave no response other than to pull the blankets around her and mutter something inaudible.

Ryuko sat up and prodded her sister in the side, hoping for a response. This wasn't like Satsuki at all; she was always up and about at what Ryuko called the 'Ass crack of dawn' every week day. Ryuko raised a finger and poked her in the face. "Oi."

She then rested her hand on Satsuki's forehead, "Jeez you're burning up! Now, I hate to say I told you so… Actually I don't, I told you to take it easy you idiot. _'I don't get sick'_ my ass." Ryuko grumbled and got out of the bed only to stumble and fall to the floor, her vision starting to spin. "Whoa, ughh fuck I'm gonna puke!" Ryuko managed to make it to the toilet in time. "This is all your fault Satsuki. You gave me the goddamn flu! I hope you're happy -blughhh."

Ryuko managed to make it back to the bed. She fumbled for her phone on the night stand, flipped it open and pressed 2 on speed dial.

"_Ryuko-chan?"_

"Ughh, Mako. I don't think I can make it to lunch."

"_You don't sound too good Ryuko-chan."_

"Yeah. I think Satsuki gave me the flu."

"_Satsuki's sick too?"_

"Yeah. Burning up. And I just re-painted the toilet in a lovely shade of puke."

"_I'll be over soon then."_

"No! Mako no. I appreciate the offer but I don't want you getting sick too. We'll be fine, just need some sleep."

Mako hummed before replying _"Okay, if you're sure you'll be alright."_

"Yeah. Ughh gonna hang up now."

"_Bye Ryuko-chan, oh and make sure to drink lots of fluids!"_

" 'kay, bye."

Ryuko ended the call and put the phone back on the night stand. She rolled over and looked at Satsuki, fatigue starting to set in.

Ryuko suddenly opened her eyes as Satsuki's phone started ringing. "Mgghh." She crawled over Satsuki and grabbed the mobile. "ughh what? I mean, Satsuki's mobile." Ryuko growled.

"…_Matoi?"_

"Hōka?"

"_What are you doing with Satsuki-samas phone?"_

"Talking to you, cause she's currently unconscious." Ryuko closed her eyes and rested her head on the bed. "She's got the flu."

"_Ah."_

"-_cough_- Yeah. Okay bye." Ryuko hung up without waiting for a reply.

"Ryuko." Satsuki's hand came out of the blankets and blindly reached for Ryuko still on top of her. "Off." She managed to grab Ryuko's face and pushed her back to other side of the bed. "Time?"

"Almost 11. Your dog just rang. –_cough_- Told him you have the flu."

Satsuki groaned into the pillow. "Not. Sick."

"Yes. You are. And you got me sick too, you butt." Ryuko weakly punched Satsuki's arm, who only groaned in response and pulled the blanket over her head.

"Oi. Don't hog the blanket."

"mgghhh." Satsuki lifted her arm and blanket, Ryuko shuffled over and into the space. She curled up into the older girl who rested her arm over Ryuko. Both falling back to sleep.

Satsuki awoke some time later. Her head felt cooler than before. She reached up and felt a slightly damp flannel on her forehead. Not knowing how it got there she opened her eyes in alarm. Ryuko, still sleeping next to her also had one. She looked over to the door when it opened and struggled to sit up.

"Mrs Mankanshoku?" her voice gravely.

"Ah Satsuki-chan your awake, now what did I tell you to call me?"

"Sorry, Obasan. I don't mean to be rude but –_cough_- what are you doing here?"

"Mako told me that both of you were down with the flu, she was going to come herself but Ryuko-chan didn't want her to get sick either so I came over instead. Someone has to make sure you two get better." She replied with a kind smile and a determined nod.

"Oh. Um. Thank you, that's very kind."

"Nonsense, you girls are part of the Mankanshoku family. Now I've got some medicine for you both and some water. If you could wake Ryuko up please, while I go and refresh these flannels." She said taking both wash cloths to the bathroom.

Satsuki watched her leave before turning her attention to Ryuko who was sprawled out over most of the bed. "Ryuko." She shook her shoulder a few times. "Ryuko wake up."

"Sghhghh fhrgghhh?" Ryuko replied her voice hoarse, eyes opening a crack. "What?" was all she got out before having a coughing fit.

"Good you're awake. Now both of you take two tablets each and drink the water. I've got some soup on the stove which should be just about ready. I want you both to eat a bowl of it. You need to keep yourselves hydrated." Sukuyo watched the two girls intently as they downed the medicine and water. "Good. Now get comfy and I'll bring the food in."

The day continued on with Sukuyo Mankanshoku mothering the two sisters, neither of whom had the strength to protest.

"Are you sure you'll be okay?" Sukuyo asked from the front door.

"Yes, in fact I'm already feeling much better. Now I'd hate to keep you from your family any longer."

"Oh Satsuki you still don't get it. You and Ryuko are both a part of the Mankanshoku family. I'll be back over tomorrow to check on you." With that she gave each girl a tight hug and left the apartment.

"You know, she'd adopt us if we let her." Ryuko said as she walked over to the couch, wrapped in a blanket, and turned on the TV.

Satsuki joined her after making two cups of tea. "So that's what a mother is supposed to be like." She muttered to herself.

Ryuko hummed in reply "It's nice isn't it, the unconditional love of a mother."

Satsuki leaned against Ryuko's side, and sipped her tea. "Yes. I'm glad Mako's family were kind enough to take you in when you first came to the Academy."

Ryuko finished her tea. "Me too." She then opened her arm to give Satsuki enough room to share the blanket. After a few minutes of silence Ryuko poked Satsuki in ribs "And you're still a butt for getting me sick."


	8. Chapter 8

"Oi, Slacker" the high nasally voice of Nonon Jakuzure came from behind Ryuko just as she was about to enter the apartment building.

"What do you want half pint?" She turned to the shorter girl with a scowl, they may not be enemies anymore but that didn't mean they had to be nice to each other, that is unless Satsuki was present.

"Hey, I don't need insults from you when I'm tryin' to be nice and do you a favour." Nonon pointed a finger at Ryuko, jabbing her chest for emphasis.

Ryuko swatted the hand away "You're only ever nice to Satsuki. What do you want with me?"

Nonon crossed her arms "You just better treat Satsuki real well on Friday."

"Why? What's on Friday?"

"Her birthday. She usually doesn't do anything but now she has you so maybe that'll change."

"Um Okay." Ryuko replied, hand scratching the back of her neck.

Nonon sighed and ran a hand through her pink hair. "For fucks sake, what I'm tryin' to say is, you should take her somewhere nice or something."

"Oh, uh yeah, okay..?"

"Good." The shorter girl nodded and walked off.

Later that day Ryuko was walking out of a coffee shop, fresh hot coffee in one hand, chocolate muffin in the other when she was interrupted.

"MATOI!" Came the booming voice of Ira Gamagōri.

"Fuck! What?" Ryuko jumped, almost spilling the coffee. She turned around the face the larger man.

Gamagōri now looked nervous. He leaned closer to Ryuko and switching to a more appropriate level of voice he continued "I have a favour to ask of you. Next Friday is-"

"Satsuki's Birthday, yeah I know. Don't worry I'm gonna take her someplace nice."

"EXCELLENT, THEN I SHALL BE SEEING YOU, MATOI." With a bow Gamagōri straightened up and walked away down the street.

Ryuko received a text message later that evening.

_Matoi,_

_Next Friday is Satsuki-samas Birthday. Please would you be so kind as to take her to a nice restaurant in celebration._

_Regards,_

_Hōka Inumuta_

"Well at least he asked me nicely." Ryuko muttered as she sent a reply in confirmation.

The next morning while Ryuko was watching the television and eating cereal in nothing but a pair of boxers and a hoodie she got a phone call from the last of the Elite four.

"Hey, Ryuko, got plans for Friday?" Uzu asked nonchalantly.

"Oh for fucks sake. Yes I know it's Satsuki's Birthday, and yes I'm taking her to a nice restaurant. Would you four at least confer between yourselves so I don't have to get four different messages telling me the same goddamn thing!" She hung up before he could utter a reply. She went back to eating her soggy cereal.

Once finished she went to the bedroom she shared with Satsuki to get changed for the day. Standing in the walk-in robe looking through the small amount of clothes she owned, Ryuko ran a hand through her already messy hair "Well Shit. I don't have anything nice to wear." Pulling out her phone she called up the only person who could help.

"Hey, Iori, I hate to disturb you, I know you're pretty busy but I need your help."

"Ryuko. I absolutely refuse to ride on the back of your bike in this dress." Satsuki stood on the steps leading up to the entrance of the apartment complex. She was wearing a form fitting black dress that was hidden under a black trench coat and boots.

Ryuko was on the curb next to her motorbike. She was dressed better than she normally would be. Wearing a black button up shirt left open at the collar and black slacks held up with red suspenders.

"C'mon Neechan, It'll be totally awesome. Me looking devilishly handsome, you looking hot, both of us riding in on my beast of a bike." She grinned up at her sister.

Satsuki sighed "As much as I appreciate the sentiment, I have to put my foot down. We're taking the car or I'm going back upstairs and you can go have a date by yourself."

Ryuko sputtered and made random gestures towards her bike before sighing and throwing her hands up in defeat "Fine. Fine, I'll go bring the car around. The boring car so we can be boring." She muttered as she walked the motorbike back to the underground garage.

Satsuki smiled in satisfaction.

"So are you going to tell me where we're going?" Satsuki asked, looking over at Ryuko, as they sped along a freeway.

"It's an Italian Restaurant that opened a few months ago. I can't remember who told me about it but it's got like a 5 star rating."

They arrived at the restaurant with time to spare; upon entering they walked up to the Host stand where a young woman greeted them "Hello and welcome to Antonio's, do you have a reservation?" She looked expectantly at them.

"Yeah, uh I mean yes. We have a reservation under the name Satsuki Kiryuin." Ryuko answered, ignoring Satsuki's questioning look.

"Ah yes. For 7:30, if you could wait a few minutes the table will be ready soon." The hostess smiled at them both before walking away, presumably to sort out their table.

At an intimate table for two sat Mako and Gamagōri, conversing over their respective meals.

"Is that? No way. Ryuko-chan and Satsuki-sama!" Mako gasped, looking past Gamagōri.

"SATSUKI-SAMA!" Gamagōri shouted and stood out of both habit and surprise, knocking their table slightly.

This managed to draw attention from more than half the restaurant, including the two sisters in question. Both looked up in surprise, they waved, albeit somewhat awkwardly, at Mako and Gamagōri in reply.

"I remember who told me about this place now." Ryuko muttered sheepishly, hand rubbing the back of her neck out of habit.

"Wow, I didn't know Ryuko-chan could scrub up that nice. And Satsuki-sama, well she looks good in anything, but that dress makes her legs go on forever!" Mako gushed in appreciation.

"I- I don't know what you're talking about." Stuttered Gamagōri, his face tinged red.

"Come now Ira. I think we can both agree that those two make quite the attractive pair, no matter what they're wearing." Mako giggled, gave his hand a squeeze and smiled, eyes darting back to the sisters now being led to their table.

Gamagōri mumbled an agreement and went back to eating his pasta.

Satsuki and Ryuko, now seated, looked over the menus in contemplation. Satsuki however, could sense Mako staring at them. "Ryuko. Mako is still staring at us."

"Hmm?" Ryuko looked over her shoulder, caught Mako's gaze, waved and went back to reading the menu. "Can't blame her for staring, I do look really good tonight. And you're not half bad yourself."

Satsuki raised an eyebrow at this.

"Okay fine, you're looking super sexy hot in that dress." Ryuko responded with a huff.

A light blush appeared on Satsuki's face, not sure what to do with such a compliment she stuttered a "Thank you?" before raising the menu to hide behind.

"And don't even get me started on the trench coat." Ryuko muttered, her own face heating up.

After placing their orders the two sisters sat in silence.

"You should wear suspenders more often, they suit you. Or even nice clothes."

"Uh, Yeah. Maybe I should. But when else am I going to wear fancy clothes though?"

Satsuki paused "Good point."

Soon enough the food arrived and they dug in, Ryuko with much enthusiasm and an utter disregard for proper dining etiquette.

"Would it be weird if I called Soroi, Alfred?" Ryuko asked around a mouth full of pasta.

Satsuki raised an eyebrow at this. "Yes it would."

"Are you sure 'cause he is literally the Alfred to your Bruce Wayne." Ryuko pointed her fork at Satsuki.

"And I literally have no idea what you are talking about."

"Batman. We're talking about Batman."

Satsuki gave Ryuko a confused look. "Batman?"

"Oh my god, no, don't tell me you don't know who Batman is!"

"What is a Batman?" Satsuki asked as she finished her meal.

"Only one of the most famous Superheros of all time!" Ryuko waved her arms around in exasperation.

"Really?" The older girl once again arched an eyebrow at this.

"That does it. When we get home we are watching Batman movies. No arguments." Ryuko once more pointed at Satsuki with her fork.

"I've got a surprise for you. Stand here and close your eyes." Ryuko held firmly to Satsuki's shoulders moving her to the kitchen counter.

"Okay." Satsuki did as she was asked. She could hear Ryuko moving about in the kitchen before coming to stand across from her.

"Okay now open."

Satsuki opened her eyes, Ryuko stood in front of her illuminated only be candle light. She looked down to see what appeared to be a cake covered in white frosting and written on top in blue icing was '_Happy Birthday Satsuki'_. Along the edge where 19 different coloured candles, all burning brightly.

"Happy Birthday Neechan." Ryuko grinned. "I made it myself, though Mako helped with the icing. Now make a wish and blow 'em out." She pushed the cake towards Satsuki.

Satsuki smiled and blew them out without hesitation. "You're here with me, what more could I wish for?" She said steadily, eyes focused on Ryuko as they stood in the dark, illuminated only by the moonlight streaming through the windows.

Ryuko blushed, muttered something in reply and turned the lights on.

"I, uh, hope you like it. I mean it's only a sponge cake with vanilla frosting. Nothing fancy or anything." Ryuko handed the older girl a knife.

Satsuki cut herself a slice and took a bite. She chewed and swallowed, eyes lighting up. "This is actually really good Ryuko!"

"Really?" Ryuko grinned. She watched as Satsuki took another larger bite, eyes closed in bliss.

Satsuki noticed Ryuko watching her when she opened her eyes again. "What's wrong?" she asked.

"Nothing, you just got some frosting- here." Ryuko reached up and gently swiped her thumb across the corner of Satsuki's mouth, removing the frosting. She looked at it before licking it off her thumb, eyes now looking hungrily at Satsuki. "Your right, it is good."

Satsuki let out a breath she didn't realise she was holding, and licked her lips, her heart was pounding. Then in a blink of an eye Ryuko was in front of her, hands on her hips and mouth connected to her own. Satsuki's eyes were wide in surprise. Her mind went momentarily blank from the pleasant warmth of Ryuko's lips. As quick as it had happened Ryuko was pulling away.

Ryuko had a panicked look now "Fuck, I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have done that." She then paced in front of her, hands grasping her hair muttering to herself. "Ryuko you idiot, she's your sister. I fucked up, I fucked up big time. Shit-" Satsuki came up behind her and hugged the younger girl around the middle.

"No, you didn't." The older girl murmured into her ear.

"How can you say that? We're sisters and I went and kissed you not to mention I've basically been checking you out all evening." She turned her head to look at Satsuki over her shoulder.

"You seem to have forgotten, I've already inadvertently told you what my feelings towards you are." Satsuki replied, a light blush appearing across her cheeks. "The other week when I had that nightmare."

Ryuko's eyes opened wide in surprise at a loss for words. Satsuki took advantage of their position and placed a kiss just below Ryuko's ear.

Ryuko turned around and Satsuki's hands moved to her waist. Satsuki gazed wistfully down at Ryuko.

"Really?" the younger girl asked in apprehension.

Satsuki nodded. "At the time I was still affected by the nightmare and I just knew I didn't want to become like _her_, but no matter how hard I try I can't stop myself from-" She paused trying to find the right words "from wanting you. Desiring you. You were right about the sexual tension between us when we were fighting."

Satsuki sighed. "We've been skirting around the subject for so long, neither of us willing to address it. I guess we've both been trying so hard not to become like her that we forgot something important."

Ryuko raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"That we love each other, and that's something she wasn't capable of." Satsuki smiled at Ryuko.

Ryuko in return pulled Satsuki into another kiss, more passionate than the last. Satsuki pulled Ryuko's body flush against her own, her mind going blank once more.

Ryuko's hands moved through Satsuki's silky black hair before resting on her neck.

Satsuki's heart skipped a beat when she heard Ryuko moan.

Soon enough they broke apart breathing heavily.

"Batman." Ryuko gasped lightly.

"What?" Satsuki asked confused, her mind still fuzzy from the kiss.

"We were gonna watch Batman." Ryuko laughed.

"Oh. Right, I remember." Satsuki grinned.

"I'm gonna go get changed." Ryuko left her embrace and started walking towards the bedroom. She paused before sprinting back and gave Satsuki a quick peck before whispering in her ear "Happy Birthday Neechan."

Satsuki watched her run off once more as a hand went to her lips, she could still feel the tingle of Ryuko's lips on her own.

"This is more than I could have wished for." She whispered to herself.

* * *

><p>I wish to apologize. I am really, really bad at writing romance of any kind...<p> 


	9. Chapter 9

Sorry for the long wait.

* * *

><p>"I'm a genius!" Ryuko suddenly sat up in the bed.<p>

"That's debatable." Satsuki muttered as she turned a page of her book.

Ryuko turned to Satsuki, ignoring the comment. "We should turn my room in to a home gym!"

Satsuki paused, eyes flicking to her sister before returning to her book and replying "No."

"What. Why not?" Ryuko crossed her arms indignantly and pouted.

"Because this building already has a gym."

Ryuko frowned. "No it doesn't."

"Yes, it does. I made sure it did when I bought the apartment."

"And you didn't tell me!" Ryuko gasped in mock horror.

"I'm certain I told you about it when we moved in- What are you doing?"

"I'm gonna go check it out." Ryuko had thrown off the blanket and was pulling on her pair of bunny slippers, courtesy of Mako.

"Ryuko it's the middle of the night, get back here."

"But I gotta see it now. Come on. I'm assuming it's on the ground floor, right?" she replied walking out the bedroom door.

Satsuki let out a sigh and set aside her book before getting out of the bed "Ryuko. Wait." She slipped her feet into her own pair of slippers and pulled on a dressing gown.

They took the elevator down to the ground floor, Satsuki got off first and Ryuko followed.

"When do you even come down here?"

"Every morning at 6:30, I would have asked you to join me but you make it a habit not to get out of bed before 9 at the earliest."

"Yeah well you get up at the ass crack of dawn." Ryuko muttered in reply.

"Here we are." Satsuki swiped a key card and opened a door that read _Recreational __Center_.

"Well this is nice. Treadmill, bikes, boxing bags, weights, a variety of other machines that no one knows how to use…" Ryuko said nodding at each machine.

Satsuki leaned against a wall and watched Ryuko walk around the room. "Can we go back now?"

"And a Sauna!" Ryuko gasped.

"There's also an indoor swimming pool, seriously Ryuko, how did you not notice? We've been here over four months now…"

"ehh I'm not particularly keen on swimming." She replied indifferently.

Satsuki raised an eyebrow at this before asking "Ryuko, you do know how to swim right?"

"Hmm? Oh yeah I can swim fine, it's just once you've had to swim with your body chopped in half it kinda loses its appeal."

Satsuki gave her a puzzled look "What- oh. Oh! Ryuko I'd forgotten about that. I'm sorry."

"Nah it's no big deal that was ages ago." Ryuko waved her hand offhandedly before turning around and exiting the gym.

"Where are you going now?" Satsuki asks her.

"Bed, it's pretty late you know. I want to get up early and come down with you in the morning." Ryuko replied as they got into the elevator.

"Oh, okay. I'd like that." Satsuki replied with a smile.

* * *

><p>The next morning Ryuko was awake and ready to go at 6:30. Unfortunately Satsuki wasn't. She was instead sprawled out across the large bed, asleep.<p>

"Satsuki. Oi, Neechan, get up." Ryuko knelt next to the bed and stared at Satsuki's face waiting for a response. Not getting one she instead resorted to poking her sides. "C'mon Satsuki. I got up at the ass crack of dawn for this."

Satsuki's eyes opened a crack, after a moment they focused on Ryuko. "It's Saturday. Go back to sleep." With that she rolled over wrapping the blankets around herself. "Weekends I sleep in."

Ryuko huffed "And you couldn't tell me this last night!"

"Thought you knew." was Satsuki's muffled reply.

"Ughh. Fine." Ryuko jumped into the bed and sprawled herself over the blanket burrito that contained her sister.

* * *

><p>Some hours later found the two sisters awake and in the gym warming up with stretches.<p>

Ryuko tried not to openly stare at Satsuki as she warmed up. She was wearing a tank top and running shorts, both highly distracting to Ryuko, especially when the shirt rode up to reveal the slight definition of Satsuki's abs.

Ryuko was pulled from her momentary distraction when Satsuki started talking to her.

"Do you want to do what I usually do or do your own thing?"

"Uhh I was thinking I'd run a bit then hit the weights."

"Alright." Satsuki nodded and walked over to the treadmills.

They both started at a gentle jog, 10 minutes in and they were running full on, Ryuko only just managing to keep up. She hadn't realised how out of shape she'd gotten the last few months, no longer having to fight any one every other day.

Soon enough Satsuki started to slow down before coming to a complete stop. She hopped off the treadmill and started on the rowing machine.

Ryuko, still on her own treadmill, couldn't help but stare at Satsuki. Watching as the muscles in her arms and legs moved with each pull, glistened with a light sheen of sweat. After a few minutes Ryuko had to stop for fear of accidentally flying off the machine because of the distraction. Instead she had a large drink of her water and moved on to the weights.

After another 5 minutes Satsuki moved to the boxing bag delivering a variety of kicks and punches. She paused, drank some water and moved over to the matted area where she stripped off her shirt revealing a sports bra underneath. She then started doing sit-ups, which would be Ryuko's undoing.

While watching Satsuki's abs contract and relax, Ryuko's mind went blank. If she had been paying more attention she would have seen the older girls' sly smirk, fully aware of Ryuko gaping at her.

Ryuko let out an almost inaudible moan, she licked her lips, dropped the dumbbells she had long since forgotten about and stood up. She walked over to Satsuki, who stopped and peered up at her.

Ryuko raised a hand towards her sister, "Lets head back." Her voice come out lower than usual, almost guttural.

Satsuki reached up and grasped the offered hand. She stood, a moment passed and Ryuko still held her hand firmly. Satsuki could see Ryuko's pupils dilated, could feel her heart beating faster. "Grab your stuff then."


	10. Chapter 10

"Are you sure you're going to be alright?" Satsuki asked while triple checking she had everything she needed.

Ryuko sighed "It's like you think I'm completely useless without you. I can look after myself for a few weeks. Now just get your ass down stairs, the car is waiting for you." She replied with a huff while walking her sister to the front door.

"I'll have my mobile with me the whole time. But just to be safe I've put a list of telephone numbers of all the places I'll be at while I'm in Europe on the Fridge. Be sure to call me if there are any problems okay." Satsuki turned to the younger girl. "I've also left an envelope with money in it on the counter, for food or emergencies."

"Oh, for crying out loud. Go. I'll be fine, you're gonna be late for your flight." Ryuko was now physically pushing Satsuki out the apartment door. "Have fun." She said as she closed the door on the older girl.

A moment later the door opened and Ryuko shouted "Wait!" She hugged Satsuki from behind and whispered in her ear "I love you. Bring me back souvenirs and junk, please. Okay bye." With that she let the older girl go and shut the door once more.

Satsuki chuckled and continued towards the lift that would take her to the lobby.

Ryuko leaned back against the door listening to Satsuki's distinctive heel click as she walked down the hall. Once she knew the older girl was gone she pulled out her phone.

"Mako, It's me. Tell the others to be here early tomorrow. We've got work to do." Ryuko said with a grin.

* * *

><p>A few hours later and Satsuki was in the air on her private jet flying to Europe. She was accompanied by her friends Shirō Iori, who'd become Designer in Chief for the newly rebranded clothing company. Hōka Inumuta, who took on the responsibility of marketing. And her ever faithful butler Soroi.<p>

Taking a sip of her tea she glanced at her mobile before picking it up and making a call.

"_Hello?"_

"Hello Mako, I hope I'm not interrupting anything?"

"_Oh not at all. Aren't you supposed to be on a plane right now?"_

"I am Mako. I just wanted to call and ask a favour of you." At this she looked up and watched the other occupants of the cabin. Iori was asleep, and Inumuta was on his ever present laptop with headphones plugged in.

"_Of course Satsuki-sama, what can I help you with?"_

Satsuki smiled to herself "First you can just call me Satsuki, Mako there's really no need for the honorific."

"_Are you sure? Because it just kinda rolls right of the tongue. Satsuki-sama, Satsuki-sama. Hmm, Satsuki. Satsuki-chan?"_ Mako babbled to herself momentarily forgetting she was on the phone to Satsuki herself.

Satsuki just shook her head with a smile. "Mako?"

"_Oh yes, sorry. What did you want me to do?"_

"Can you check in on Ryuko while I'm gone? I know I shouldn't be worried about her; she is technically an adult after all. But…"

"_But she's still your Imouto and you'll worry no matter what?"_ Mako replied with insightful wisdom.

"Yes, exactly. From what I've observed she doesn't really do well being on her own." Satsuki sighed.

"_Don't you worry, I'll be sure to keep her company, she won't even notice you're gone. Wait, that doesn't sound right. What I mean is she'll not miss you- no."_

Satsuki chuckled "It's alright; I understand what you're trying to say. Thank you, Mako. Anyway I should let you go, I know it's getting rather late. Oh and make sure Ryuko waters the plants. And doesn't have take-out every day."

"_Will do, and make sure you don't work too hard on your holiday. Bye Satsuki-chan."_ With that the phone went silent before Satsuki could tell Mako she was on a business trip not a vacation.

* * *

><p>Satsuki arrived home at the apartment two weeks later on the Sunday morning at the ungodly hour of 4am. Several hours earlier than what had been the original arrival time but they had managed to get an earlier departure time. She was pleased to see everything seemed to be as she had left it. Leaving her baggage by the front door she went straight to the bedroom she and Ryuko shared.<p>

She wasn't surprised to find Ryuko sprawled out across the whole bed snoring softly. Neither of them could be called graceful sleepers. Satsuki had lost count the number of times she'd had to untangle herself from both Ryuko and the blankets.

She stripped off her clothes and put on a loose shirt before slipping into the bed. She rested her head on Ryuko's shoulder and wrapped her arms around her stomach. "I'm home." She whispered with a smile as her eyelids grew heavy.

Hours later Satsuki awoke to an empty bed. She sat up, wiping the sleep out of her eyes and stretched. It was rare for Ryuko to be awake before her.

"Good morning sleepy head." Ryuko came through the door holding a tray laden with food. "I made breakfast." She walked to the bed and put the tray on the bedside table.

As soon as Ryuko had released the tray she was pulled down into Satsuki's warm embrace, face firmly planted in the older girls' bosom. "Good morning Imouto." Satsuki sighed happily. She relaxed her grip allowing Ryuko to lean back and grin up at her.

"You're awfully happy today."

"I'm just happy to be home." Satsuki held Ryuko's face, eyes half lidded she captured Ryuko's lips in a chaste kiss. After a few moments she pulled away and seemingly switched back into over protective older sister mode. "Did you manage alright? I hope you didn't have junk food the whole time. Did you water the plants?"

It took Ryuko a moment to adjust to the sudden change. "As you can see I have neither died from starvation nor burnt down the apartment. Yes I watered the plants. And I have something really awesome to show you. But first, breakfast." Ryuko replied.

After breakfast in bed Satsuki showered and dressed for the day. Ryuko eagerly pulled her across the hall to her former bedroom. With a flourish she opened the door wide to allow Satsuki a better view of the room.

"Ta-da! Whatcha think?"

The large queen sized bed was still there in the middle of the room against a wall. At the foot of it however was a sofa and two large bean bags and on the opposite wall was a large television that was connected to a variety of consoles.

Satsuki raised an eyebrow "I guess it's better than a home gym but why have you set all this up in here? We have a perfectly good television and sofa in the living room."

"It's for movie or game nights. So we can entertain our friends and shit."

"How did you afford all this? I only left you 50,000¥" Satsuki asked frowning in suspicion at Ryuko's grin.

"Turns out Dad left me a pretty good inheritance, oh which reminds me." Ryuko walked out the bedroom and down to the study. Upon entering she went to a filing cabinet and removed some documents before handing them to Satsuki. "The last few months I've been going over what's left of Dads house and went through all the crap, most of the stuff has been destroyed but fortunately I was able to find the fire proof safe he kept important documents and stuff in, including his Will and surprisingly my birth certificate. You would not believe how long it took for me to figure out the combination to it."

Satsuki took the offered documents and looked through them; she glanced at the Will before turning her attention to the birth certificate.

"Father Isshin Matoi. Mother Yui Matoi?" Satsuki looked up from the paper to Ryuko in confusion.

"Yeah I was confused at first too but then I figured it would be stupid to put Ragyo's name on there if he's tryin' to hide both himself and a new born baby."

Satsuki looked back at the documents and read the kanji written "Yui, read as _bind,_ _clothing_." She raised an eyebrow at that.

"Yeah Dad wasn't really the best a naming things considering he literally named me abandoned child. But hey, at least now I can get a passport." Ryuko grinned up at Satsuki.

Satsuki handed back the documents "Well make sure they're kept safe." Ryuko nodded and put them away before turning to the older girl.

"Now that that's out of the way let's get down to business." Ryuko's hands grasped Satsuki's shoulders as she looked up at the taller girl with a serious expression.

Satsuki raised an eyebrow.

"Did you get me presents?"

* * *

><p>50,000¥ = about $500<p> 


	11. Chapter 11

"Ryuko?" Satsuki whispered, their lips barely touching. Eye's half lidded, pupils blown out in desire.

"Yeah?" Ryuko replied breathily, looking up at the older girl who had her pinned to the bed.

"Do I have a sister complex?" She leaned back, resting on Ryuko's hips.

"What?" Ryuko asked brow furrowed in confusion.

"Do I-" Satsuki was interrupted by Ryuko's hand covering her face.

"What!" Ryuko asked again this time with a guttural growl. "You stopped kissing me to ask _me_ if you have a sister complex. Seriously? Sats, you have got to be _the_ stupidest smart person I know."

Before Satsuki knew what was happening Ryuko had flipped them over and was leaning over her, Ryuko's hands either side of her head.

Ryuko leaned down slowly with the intent to kiss her, until she changed direction and went for Satsuki's pale slender neck.

All Satsuki could do was gasp and wrap her arms around Ryuko's back to pull her closer, a hand moved up and tangled in Ryuko's scruffy hair, legs still on either side of Ryuko's hips. She tried to stifle the moan, trying to make itself heard from the way Ryuko was licking and biting her neck, shoulder and ear.

Soon enough Ryuko made her way along the strong jaw, kissing and nipping until she reached Satsuki's lips. She kissed her, sliding her tongue along Satsuki's lower lip asking for access to which she gladly consented.

Ryuko's hands had made their way to the edge of Satsuki's tank top and were slowly moving up her sides. The friction of Ryuko's boxer shorts and Satsuki's pyjama shorts causing both to start up a slow clumsy rhythm of movement with their hips.

Satsuki could almost feel her cognitive functions shutting down as her body reacted to the pleasurable attention it was getting.

Satsuki gasped as she felt Ryuko's thumbs ghost across the underside of her breasts.

And then Ryuko pulled away leaving Satsuki panting, eyes unfocused.

Ryuko untangled herself from Satsuki's limbs, got off the bed and walked out the bedroom re-adjusting her boxers as she left.

Satsuki inhaled sharply, eyes and _most_ higher brain functions coming back into focus. She leapt off the bed and ran after the younger girl.

"RYUKO!" Satsuki roared down the hall momentarily stopping Ryuko. Before the shorter girl could do anything Satsuki had jumped on to her back. "Where do you think you're going?" she growled into Ryuko's ear.

"Kitchen, we've not had our usual evening cup of tea yet." Ryuko replied as nonchalant as possible, managing to slowly walk down the hall leading away from the bedrooms. "Jeez you're kinda heavy Nee-chan."

Choosing to ignore the jab at her weight Satsuki whispered "Finish what you started!" in a dangerously seductive tone.

Ryuko's resolve almost broke at that, but she wanted to mess with Satsuki a little longer. "Technically you started it." Came her strained reply, still walking to the kitchen but at a much slower pace.

Satsuki nipped on the shell of Ryuko's ear and breathed out a demand. "Bedroom. Now."

That was when Ryuko decided she should listen to the seductive voice in her ear. With a renewed vigor she spun on her heel to head back the way she came.

Only to come crashing down, face impacting the carpet. With the extra weight on her back her sock clad foot had slipped on the carpeted floor.

Both Satsuki and Ryuko lay on the floor. Satsuki still clinging to Ryuko, arms wrapped around her chest.

After a moment of silence Satsuki pulled her arms out from under Ryuko and rolled off her back. "Ryuko, are you alright?"

"Faarrckk" came Ryuko's muffled reply. She turned her head to look at Satsuki, who gasped as she saw the alarming amount of blood pouring from Ryuko's nose.

"Oh no, Ryuko your nose could be broken. Here let me check it." Satsuki pulled the younger girl to her feet and dragged her to the bathroom. "Sit down." She pushed Ryuko down onto the shower stool and got a damp cloth.

"Ah blam nou fer dis." Ryuko said, head tilted back.

"_You_ shouldn't have walked away." Satsuki tutted as she gently wiped the blood from Ryuko's face. Fortunately it had stopped bleeding. "It doesn't look out of place; you'll be healed in a few minutes anyway. I'll get you some ice though, hold on."

Satsuki came back quickly with a bag of ice wrapped in a cloth, while also talking to someone on the phone.

"Hello, yes it's Satsuki, quick question, how do you get blood stains out of a carpet?" Satsuki pressed the ice pack to Ryuko's face, who flinched at the sudden cold and pressure and glared up at her.

"mhmm, yes, Ryuko's blood." She paused "Slipped and fell face first. Once I washed away the blood it didn't look too bad, I've given her an ice pack to keep the swelling down." She walked back out of the bathroom and into the kitchen. "Hold on I'll get a pen and paper. Okay, go ahead." Satsuki nodded as she took down the instructions on effective blood removal techniques. "Okay, thanks I'll give these a try. Oh there's no need to worry about Ryuko, she'll be fine. Thanks for this, goodnight." Satsuki ended the call and looked to Ryuko who had joined her.

"Who wad dat?" Ryuko asked nasally.

"Mrs Mankanshoku. I was going to ask Soroi but it's a bit late and who better to ask about this sort of thing than the wife of a Doctor." Satsuki replied while reading through the list she had made.

Ryuko nodded, grunted and glared at Satsuki before muttering "No more kisses for you tonight." then headed for the bedroom.

Satsuki sighed, shook her head and got to work on the clean-up. _I'll make it up to her tomorrow._


End file.
